My entire trip to Disney, from the planning phase to the moment I was reunited with my parents at the end was filled with "angels." I was so nervous going into this adventure, so much had to be done and it was going to be a costly thing to have go sideways. But, from the very start, God paved the way and put people in the right place at the right time.
Beforehand: I had been saving up, slowly, for the trip. The multiple moves, cancer battle, and other things had put that on hold. But I had the special needs trust to lean on if I didn't save enough. But then the first angel arrived. A lifelong mentor and dear friend sent a check that covered the entire cost of the resort and park tickets! I'd just need to cover the car, airfare, scooter rental, and daily expenses.
Then, as the announcement of the trip was made, a former co-worker and precious friend Margret, and her husband Greg, contacted me. They are avid Disney World fans and visit frequently. They said they'd come with me for the first part of the trip. I wasn't going to have to tackle Disney alone!
Onward to Flordia: I had gotten a great discount with USAA for my plane ticket, and it was a straight-through flight to Orlando - so needed. The problem is the flight initially labeled as United was actually Silver Airways. The reviews for the airline were appalling, so I braced myself. Sure enough, it took 4 days and nine hours to reach a human about needing a skycap to get me from curb to terminal, only to find out the day of that they never put in the notes. Thankfully, Huntsville Airport scrambled and found a super sweet employee who took me all the way through. I made sure at the terminal to have the person checking us in note I needed wheelchair assistance at Orlando. He promised to enter it in right that moment. He didn't.
After 5 hours of delays and getting to Orlando at 1 a.m., the wheelchair wasn't there. The lady at the desk was annoyed, and those on the plane were super apologetic as I waited and waited for help. But an angel of a young man was sent to help me. He was so sweet and decided to break protocol. He's only supposed to take me to the luggage/curb and that's it. But it was so late, and I was so tired, and he saw it so took me all the way out to the garage and got me checked in with the car rental, and even loaded up the vehicle for me!
The drive to the resort was painful. I had torn up the surgery site in my elbow a few weeks prior and was in the big metal brace post-injections for all of the trip. But, I made it to Pop Century at nearly 2 a.m. The woman at the front desk was saddened by my experience getting there and quickly called someone to help as she saw I was dead on my feet. I had to somehow get both my rented scooter, car, and luggage, over to where my room was. Enter the next angel, named Edwin. He drove the scooter around as I found a place to park closer to the room. Then we switched places with him hauling my luggage (mind you this is heavy because I had IV fluids and my CPAP in the big bag on top of everything you'd usually bring.) At 2:40 I was finally securely in the room and resting.
At Disney: Bright and early, I met with Margret and Greg. Margret with one of those awesome cooling towels in hand as a gift for me. We were soon off and running to Epcot to see my favorite character, Figment! But we were having some issues understanding the DAS system, and that's when the next angel arrived. An elderly man, working for Disney in his retirement years, patiently explained the difference between DAS and DAS Advanced that I'd set up and showed me how to access it all on the phone. Margret and Greg were the best angels the two days, using their photo pass so I had some amazing memory pictures, making sure I knew the best ways to get to the best spots for when I was soloing later, getting us onto Ride of the Resistance on a super busy day (OMG that ride!), the hilarity at Prime Time Diner and so much more. Along the way, there were people who opened doors, raced over to help if I dropped something, helped me reach items I couldn't because of the scooter or brace, noticed my "This is my fight hat" with the breast cancer symbol and shared their stories or words of encouragement and more. It wasn't just staff either but fellow visitors. I've never felt more accepted than those days in the park.
Interlude at The Villages: I loved the four days of seeing family at The Villages. But the angel shout-outs go to my Aunt Anna for her incredible packing skills! I had to ship a box home because there wasn't any way to fit the droid I bought, and other things, into my suitcase otherwise. She fit so much into that little box, I don't know how she did it! The other is to my cousin Stephanie for the wonderful hours we spent hanging out and catching up. It was so meaningful and needed.
Heading Home to Tennessee: After how the flight out went, I was quite nervous about the one home. Orlando does not have a good reputation among disabled fliers, especially regarding their TSA. I hadn't heard from TSA Cares so left super early to make sure I could get through it and the airport with waits for help. But the moment I pulled my rental car up and started to strap on the arm brace, an employee of the airport was there to load my luggage onto the cart after reminding that he works for tips. We had a lovely chat about his home country of Venezuela as he helped me through checking in the car and getting to the counter for Silver. They actually had noted my need of a wheelchair this time, so the wait for one wasn't too long. The next skycap was kind and we lucked out that the TSA line was bizarrely short (though the TSA employee lived up to Orlando's reputation of not being kind.) The flight was on time, and soon I was in Huntsville. There, the same guy who did not enter my need for help before was waiting with a wheelchair. He was apologetic. We discussed the problem, and I asked about him. Found out he was a student at the local university and was studying computer science while also working long hours at the airline. He became the last angel of the trip as he made sure I not just got my luggage but he stayed with me until I was at my parent's side once more - much to my mom's relief. She panicked the whole trip!
And so we have the angels of my trip to Disney. It was so much more than expected. Every single person came at just the perfect moment to make my travel adventure go so much better than expected. I am so very, very grateful.
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